TikTok—arguably Gen Z’s favorite social media platform—might get banned a day before president-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration.
Last April, President Joe Biden signed a bill that would ban the app in the United States unless its Chinese-founded parent company, BytesDance Ltd., sold it to the U.S. government. Since then, BytesDance has refused to sell. They would prefer to roll with the ban if all other legal means fail, as sources close to them say it would have “limited impact” on business operations, according to Reuters.
As the U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments on the ban, some TikTok users wonder if Congress is overstepping its constitutional powers to promote its own agenda, with Gen Z amongst those wondering what a possible ban means for them.
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Get notified of top trending articles like this one every week! (we won't spam you)Can SCOTUS Ban TikTok?
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This is still up for debate. In September 2024, TikTok Inc. and BytesDance Ltd. contested the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, calling the ban a violation of American's freedom of speech. While the District Court agreed that this could be argued under strict scrutiny—the highest form of judicial review courts use to decide whether an issue is constitutional—it concluded that the government acted within its constitutional power and denied TikTok’s petition to stop the ban.
TikTok took to the Supreme Court weeks later. They alleged that Congress’ ban is an attempt to regulate the content of TikTok user’s speech, and is not acting within its constitutional power. The First Amendment protects the public’s speech from government censorship and control. Under the First Amendment, speech cannot be restricted because of its content and restricted speech must fall into categories including threats and fighting words.
Although TikTok’s status as a private company limits governmental jurisdiction over TikTok users' speech and censorship, some opponents of the ban believe banning TikTok will silence Americans using the platform to discuss polarizing topics such as the inauguration of the incoming president.
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Why Does the Government Want to Ban TikTok Anyway?
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The effort to ban TikTok was spearheaded by former Representative Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin, who introduced the bill to the House in March 2023 and served as Chairman of the Select Committee for Competition Against the Chinese Communist Party. He and supporters of the ban cited the platform’s ability to “influence public opinion”, promote election propaganda, and pose a national security threat to the United States due to TikTok’s suspected ties to the Chinese Communist Party as reason for the ban.
TikTok has denied having affiliation with the CCP and alleges in its appeal to the Supreme Court that it formed an agreement with the National Security Agency which would create an American-based organization to store American user data collected by the app in order to ease Congress' fears of a security threat. In the same appeal, TikTok alleges the Committee for Foreign Investment in the United States prevented the agreement from moving forward in September 2022.
The belief that the Chinese Communist Party might force TikTok to compromise American user data comes from China’s 1 percent “golden share” in Douyin, a similar version of TikTok owned by BytesDance only available in mainland China. A report from the “Myths v. Facts” section of TikTok’s U.S. Data Security Homepage states that China’s 1 percent share in Douyin is “a common arrangement” between China and media services required by Chinese law and has no effect on TikTok’s operations.
In June 2022, a BuzzFeed News investigation found that private American TikTok user data was frequently accessed between September 2021 and January 2022 by engineers in China employed by BytesDance after TikTok assured the U.S. that American data stayed in the United States.
Though Congress admits it doesn't have evidence to prove China has coerced TikTok into compromising U.S. data before, the mistrust between the U.S. and China, along with the Chinese government’s attempts to spy on and hack U.S. databases in the past, warrant their suspicion, according to ABC News’ interviews with cybersecurity specialists.
How Will a Possible Ban Affect the Millions of Teens Who Live on The App?
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If TikTok is banned, this would make it roughly the 5th social media app Gen Z has said goodbye to in their lifetime. TikTok’s departure would come after the loss in popularity and discontinuation of apps like Monkey, Kik, Skype, and Vine— once used platforms that fell off because of the rise of newer, exciting apps. The same thing could happen to TikTok.
With the rise of apps like Locket, Twitter-alternative Bluesky, and recently released NoSpace, TikTok might fade into the background, and remain a brief memory for the youngest of Gen Z just entering their teens. Or maybe, a wishful U.S. start-up will avenge the death of the beloved app, creating an American version of it. Although it won’t be the same, a TikTok ban could give way for platforms like YouTube to expand their microcontent features.
Fortunately, Gen Z won’t have to bid their favorite app farewell just yet. According to Section 2 of the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, TikTok users will be allowed to retrieve available account data “including posts, photos, and videos” before the ban is enacted, meaning you’ll still get to enjoy those 30-second clips worth hours of your life.
Banning TikTok is also easier said than done for those who already have the app downloaded on their mobile devices. Congress’s ban seeks to remove TikTok from app stores in the United States and prevent further updates and site maintenance by the company. It is unclear whether this means the app will disappear from your mobile devices as doing so could be a violation of Americans' right to privacy. Following a ban, the app might experience long-term malfunctions and software issues, rendering it an archive for those who downloaded it prior to its disappearance.
There are likely to be loopholes following Congress' implementation of the ban. Users could use VPN networks to assign their devices a location in a country where TikTok is legal and bypass the possible ban, according to Cybernews. This ban could also lead to more bans of social networking platforms in the future as Congress’ bill is not limited to TikTok.
A clause in the bill defines a foreign adversary-controlled application, in part, as a “website, desktop application, mobile application, or augmented or immersive technology application that is operated, directly or indirectly” by a rival of the United States which is deemed a “significant threat to the national security of the United States" by the president. This puts other platforms at risk of a ban.
As TikTok’s fate in the United States is decided and sensitive freedoms become compromised, Gen Z might mobilize, reminding opponents of TikTok that the app goes beyond “brain rot” trends and the results of scientific studies while fearing and remembering more than the loss of their favorite app.